So here’s the thing and don’t shoot me. I used to be the person that wanted holidays packed with seeing the place, relaxing, basically everything in a holiday. But then we had a child x2. This time, all I wanted was a holiday where I could just be, no itinerary other than lounging and no real task other than to eat and keep tiny humans alive. No big deal.
Here’s the tricky part. Whilst many many hotels and resorts claim to be family friendly, what even does that mean? For the most part, I’ve found many places have got it so wrong.
Example, we once went on holiday that claimed there was a toddler pool that was heated, only it was cold. Freezing. Not what we were after when we wanted to splash about and I’d paid for a swimming outfit for the little guy that would hardly get any use thanks to the cold swimming pool.
And then there’s food. When you have children or if you just have fussy adults, you want a place that caters for everyone, that isn’t just chips for your children.
Finally, there’s the actual rest. The place you call home for some time thereby the anticipation of sleep.
So here’s the latest in our stint at holiday relaxation. First up, with two children I had low expectations for ourselves but high expectations on what I expected from where we were going.
We travelled to the place that has been voted the best “all inclusive in the world”. I haven’t been to many to say I agree but it has got to me pretty much one of the most memorable places I’ve been to.
The IKOS group are a family run chain of resorts dotted around Greece with more opening in Europe. It’s truly all inclusive and I understand why many people rave about it. So here’s my review of the place we called home for a week.
Ikos Olivia
On arrival, the setting is gorgeous. It’s immaculate and everyone is smiling. Our room won’t be ready for a couple of hours, which gives us some time to catch some lunch and we are starving.
Our room with a view
I purposely splashed out on a larger room due to having two children and it did pay off, my only gripe was that instead of a traditional cot there was a travel cot, but it was large enough for our bubbs although the lowering her all the way down into what could effectively be a playpen did do my back in!
We didn’t stay long enough for me to try out the bathtub and I was actually so shattered most nights we just rolled into early nights with the kids! Night time feeds were pretty constant so catching the z’s was immensely important!
The pools
I have to say the pools were amazing. They had a couple of pools for kids and it was almost like seeing most of the UK on holiday as most people were from England, clearly everyone had the same idea as us. The attention to detail by the staff around the pool was fabulous, always making sure you are fed and watered, the mocktails were also lovely. And guess what?! The toddler pool was WARM!
The beach
I have to say once again where Ikos stands out is in its service. The beach staff were amazing, one in particular, made a stunning milkshake (I may have had a cheeky bit of baileys in mine) and got us snacks for the little guy too. The only gripe which isn’t IKOS’ fault is the sand is grittier than I’d wanted but still perfect for sand castles and searching for shells.
The food
Here’s where I get really excited. I am a self confessed foodie through and through, I get excited when the veggie options are as amazing or just as thought out as the meat, and boy did Ikos do food well. The stand out was “Flavors” their Mediterranean buffet and I am still in mourning that I can’t get decent Greek yoghurt in the UK.
Some of the restaurants I thought could have done better and potentially let the whole resort down. All in all though the food was amazing bar one restaurant but potentially maybe it was an off day.
Desserts were also exquisite. Try not to salivate on viewing these, I dare you!
Tip: If you like seafood, go to Greece, it really doesn’t matter where but the seafood was amazing.
The most amazing Octopus I think I’ve had – period!
The experiences
What did we do out there? With one three year old and a three month old, we did what the three year old wanted which was the beach and the pool and some “family time” aka piling up on the bed and have a cuddle.
We had planned to take a Mini out for the day and explore but it was all booked up so it’s one for us to do the next time.
The positives
In talking to the Executive Chef (The Greek God of pastry if I can be so honest) whilst I was out there, I mentioned in passing that it was our wedding anniversary and from that point on we had treats almost every day to our door. Some pics below. Although I had infact told our travel agent on booking that we were there to celebrate, I was disappointed that nothing actually happened until I had mentioned it to the Chef. So the Chef alone, is a real credit to Ikos as he demonstrated what everyone at IKOS should be about- over delivering on customer expectations and making them feel extra special. He even sourced me a local honey just because I’d said how much I loved it! Giannis, you aren’t just someone we met on holiday but a true gentleman and kind hearted person with immense talent!
A surprise awaited us in our room
The most memorable experience for me has to be our dinner on the beach. It was a gorgeous evening and I surprised the husband with it, and the Chef really made us feel fab. The food was amazing again and my son ate lots watching the waves crashing by our feet!
Dinner on the beach
As far as holidays go with kids, I look forward to returning to another IKOS especially as the kids get a little older as the kids clubs seemed great and there’s plenty of activities to keep kids and adults happy and occupied.
Possibly the most impressive thing about IKOS was that everyone from the cleaners to the buggy drivers seemed genuinely happy to work there and went out of their way to talk to you, tell you their recommendations or just make friends.
A tiny area to improve
Honestly, I can’t think of anything that I could fault them on, possibly one or two of the restaurant staff could do with being more passionate about the food and knowing a bit more about the detail of what’s on offer given that food is such a huge selling point for the IKOS resorts, but that’s a really small negative in a sea of positive!
Oh and a proper cot would’ve been better but I knew not to expect sleep in any case on this holiday so it didn’t bother me as much!
IKOS, we will be back! If you want to know more, please comment below.
MATHURINI 